Teri Parris Ford's Blog

Happy Thanksgiving

I was very ready for a fall break and so glad we now get the Wednesday before the Thanksgiving holiday off as well. I used to have to get permission to take Tuesday and Wednesday off for travels but this year I stayed in Madison. Jessi came to Wisconsin with her boyfriend. Jim traveled to Canada for a conference, hoping I would join him but did not want to miss out on time with the girls together. While we were missing Jim, it was wonderful to have Jessi home for a few days. We made all the traditional fixing plus a few more extras. Monika got us tickets to My Fair Lady at the Overture on Friday and spent the evening walking around the capitol and picking up some yummy Wisconsin delights.

I feel like I have a ton of things to do but am in no mood to do too much. I'm enjoying savoring the time to celebrate the changing season, cooking and cleaning, making fires and watching movies.

Weekend in Rochester

Friday was parent/teacher conferences so I was able to run out of work right away and get to Rochester for dinner with Jim. Spending the weekend up north is always a bit like a nice getaway. Jim keeps the house pretty clean (except for the shower and toilet). I packed up all the fall decor and started getting the christmas stuff out. Jim and I went for a couple of long walks and enjoy some quality time together. I do love having a gas fireplace which makes morning fires so much faster and just as warm. It is certainly a lot cleaner, although I did clean the glass which can get pretty blackened. We also had an outdoor fire in the solo stove which I got last year on sale at Costco and love. Jim had a Hmong News Years event at the university to go to Saturday which made for a fun outing. 

I got home early Sunday evening in time to have dinner with Monika and start planning our Thanksgiving holiday week. I only had two days of school to prep for and am so ready for some time off.  

Birthday Day Week

Birthday week usually kicks off with Balt's birthday but we missed him this year. His absence continue to weigh on me, knowing going out to get another dog will not replace him but might help. The next dog in my life will be shared with Jim and at home in Minnesota. Balt would have been 13. Jessi spent her birthday busy with work in VA. She turned 29. We are happy to have her in the country during this stressful time of war on the other side of the planet. I worry about her friends in the Mediterranean Sea. Erika got the weekend to celebrate. We made her brunch on Saturday and dinner on Sunday. I offered to replace her phone and gave my airpods pro (I replaced them for myself with regular airpods). Erika turned 33.

I took Erika to see my finance guy this week to start on her retirement planning. I started my retirement planning at 33 and I will be able to retire comfortably. Both of my parents were great examples of having planned well for retirement but they lived during a time when it was a little easier I think. My dad had a Cadillac retirement funded by the Teamsters. My mom had a comfortable retirement funded in part by the county of LA and a little fund with the state of CA. My parents both died way too young (74) but at least they both had time to enjoy their very comfortable retirements. I've had several teacher friends die this month. Teachers who retired within the past 10 years who make me think about how I want my days at the end of my life. I'm looking at 10, 20 maybe 30 years still to go here on earth. There's a lot to do!

...and now it's November!

I pulled out my Halloween costume back in September to fix up and get ready since I had not worn it for over a decade. I only had one student not know who I was this year, "what are you, a princess?" OMG. When I was Princess Leah, I got a lot of "who are you's" but maybe my costume was not spot on? I feel like I nailed it this year. Erika was not allowed to dress up at her school which was a shame. Monika wore a witch's hat for her zoom meetings. 

When I see my photos from Halloween, I'm painfully aware I'm a bit heavier this fall and I'm struggling with my diet-- eating way too many Halloween treats. I keep starting over with different exercise programs and diets. I know it only gets harder throughout the winter. I've started making homemade bread again and love making soups at this time of year. It's a struggle I think I will have until I die. As I age I realize I spend more and more of my time just dealing with diet and exercise.